STEP Training

MIT STEP offers a teacher licensing program that can be done entirely at MIT or in conjunction with courses at Wellesley College. This program licenses students to teach mathematics or science in grades 5-12. The Scheller Teacher Education Program, offered through the Department of Urban Studies and Planning, prepares MIT students to become teachers who are competent to teach in their field, willing to challenge established norms, able to bridge the boundaries among disciplines, and eager to help students develop the desire to question and explore. Click here for more info on STEP and here for more info on classes.

For Educators

STEP is actively engaged in many research and development projects, designing and testing new learning technologies for use in formal and informal education. While some projects are in limited testing with partners, others are freely available for all to try and to use (some complete with curriculum and assessment). Find out more about these projects on the projects page.

Latest on Twitter

RSS Feed

We Follow

Forest Fire Unit

When is a fire “good” and when is it “bad”? What is the role of humans in preventing and stopping wildland fires? Students use StarLogo TNG simulation models of forest fires to explore these essential and provocative questions which have no simple answers. Students conduct experiments, make observations, collect and interpret data, and use their findings to make informed risk-benefit decisions in game-like challenges using the modeling software. Students also engage in simple programming to modify the behavior of the model.

The curriculum unit includes 4 activities over 7 class periods (assuming 45-50 minutes per class). Although the unit is designed for middle school science classes, the activities also provide a general introduction to StarLogo TNG modeling and programming and highlight the value of simulations modeling in modern science. Also, the unit activities can be used in conjunction with other classroom activities about forest fires and the forest ecosystem.

Introduction: Students experiment with wind and tree density variables in a forest fire simulation to determine how these two variables affect the spread and devastation of a fire that starts randomly in a forest. In a programming activity, students modify the simulation to observe the effects of the terrain on fire spread.

Firescaping: By programming the movements of a fire fighter in the forest fire simulation, students cut firebreaks and start fires to determine an ideal firebreak width that will prevent fires from “jumping.' Once the ideal firebreak width is found, students are challenged to design a forest by using firebreaks and replanting trees to decrease the devastation caused by a random fire.

Prescribed Burn: In a model that simulates the accumulation of dead plant matter over time, students experiment with the number of sick trees to determine the tipping point that would result in a destructive fire. Students then modify the simulation to include fire fighters that randomly burn sick trees to maintain a healthy forest.

Runaway Bunny Game: Students play a game where they control a bunny in a forest where random fires start every x number of seconds. The game objective is to get to safety while saving as many animals as possible by having them follow the bunny to safety. Students use what they learned about how forest fires spread by designing difficulty levels for the game.

In the final lesson, Runaway Bunny Game, students apply the knowledge and insight they've gained about forest fire spread to design different levels for the game by tweaking variables in a forest such as wind, tree density, and the percentage of sick trees.